A collaboration between researcher supported by the DOE and NSF-MRSEC's at UC Santa Barbara and UMASS Amherst, and IBM has led to a revolutionary chip breakthrough that promises to be used in every future microelectronic device. Exploiting novel chemistry and physics, nanoporous thin films have been fabricated from self assembling block copolymers in a lithographic process that allows traditional dielectric materials to be replaced by air. This permits chips to run faster and use less energy. This is a significant advance in exploiting nanotechnology and enhances the competitiveness of US companies in this critical industry. According to Dr. John Kelly, IBM's senior vice president of research and development, "To our knowledge, this is the first time anyone has used nanoscale self-assembled materials to build things that machines aren't capable of doing."
